All newcomers to lacrosse must learn the fundamental skill of catching. Young athletes drop too many easy passes, giving their opponents the opportunity to retake the ball. This is a quick and simple method to make your son’s lacrosse coach crazy! Your kid will have a hard time making a travel lacrosse team if he can’t catch and pass easily. These tutorials and catching advice can help your youngster or player catch a lacrosse ball with ease.
How Should You Hold A Lacrosse Shaft When Catching?
Your dominant hand should be towards the top of the lacrosse stick when catching the ball, and your non-dominant hand should be close to the butt of the shaft. When catching a lacrosse ball as opposed to throwing one, there is a significantly greater distance between your two hands on your lacrosse stick.
How Should You Position Your Body When Catching?
Practice as you play is the key to getting the most out of your practice time. You should never be standing steady or straight up when playing lacrosse. You must adopt an athletic stance and advance your feet toward the ball.
- Always face the direction the pass is coming from.
- Standing with your feet shoulder-width apart in an athletic stance
- Move your feet when the ball is in flight to make it come to you rather than having to catch it awkwardly.
Keep your stick “in the box” when catching a lacrosse ball so your teammates have a solid target to hit. The box is the region that extends from your shoulder to the top of your helmet. Keep your stick in the box to make it easier to see where to aim, and then shift your feet to make sure the ball always lands in that spot.
What Are Some Effective Tips In Catching Lacrosse Balls?
- Start by practicing catches with a tennis ball if your young son or player is having problems catching because he is terrified of being hit by a hard lacrosse ball.
- If you don’t have a partner, a wall ball is an excellent way to practice catching and throwing. For suggestions on catching and throwing, go to our page on Wall Ball Drills. You may always get a lacrosse rebounder to improve your catching if you don’t have access to a free wall to practice on (like a school wall or garage wall).
- To make catching considerably simpler, make sure your son or player keeps his top hand next to the head of the lacrosse stick rather than down in the middle of the shaft.
- Practice exchanging hands with your son or other players so they can catch a ball sent to their weaker side. Children’s ability to shoot, pass, and catch with both their right and left hands is frequently tested at lacrosse tryouts. It is doubtful that a player will be selected for a talented lacrosse team if they are unable to catch with confidence with their non-dominant hand.
What Are Some Lacrosse Catching Drills?
- Practice basic right and left-hand passes and catches with a partner who is standing still.
- Two kids are passing back and forth as they go parallel down the field. It might be challenging for beginners to run and catch with their non-dominant hands.
- Learn to catch goaltender clearances. Play the goalie and instruct your team to make a breakaway to the left or right of the goal in order to capture a ball in motion.
- How frequently do young children make flawless passes? nearly never. You must therefore practice making “poor” passes. When your player’s right hand is holding the stick, throw passes to the left, too low, too wide, etc.
- Practice using just one hand to catch passes. When passing a ball, the player must stretch his stick since it is almost too high or wide (versus keeping his hand near the head of the stick). This will enable him to catch inaccurate passes from his teammates or intercept passes from opponents. This might potentially be used as a wall ball drill.
Conclusion
At every level of lacrosse, effective ball movement and the ability to catch the lacrosse ball are necessary for success. Any lacrosse player can improve their game by practicing catching the ball in drills, wall ball, or a friendly toss. For seasoned lacrosse players, catching a ball should ultimately come naturally, but everyone still needs to regularly practice this ability to be competitive.
